Oh WOW! Check this out..........

[Gary Herring]

S. Disparizona according to fishbase is from a 'tropical' climate, although it does'nt specify a temp range. From the drainage of the Salween in Yannan, China, apparantly.

[Graeme Robson]

I've been meaning to ask, Gary. How's the Levamisole treatment be doing?

[Gary Herring]

Ah, yes. Not too good TBH. I'll update the 'Skinny Gastro's' thread.

[mikev]

One weird fish (drooling a bit)...I wonder if the head and the dorsal are as they supposed to be or damaged?

But I'm drooling even more about



(from the same thread)...a half-erased hillstream-like pattern...

Yeah this are Lepidocephalichthys berdmorei. Lovely peaceful loaches which are 'vast' in appearance and distribution. I keep 3 of these chaps.

Drooling more. These guys are great.... One day...

Graeme, are you trying to collect the fish I want?

[Graeme Robson]

lol when i first found these, they where very small. My first thoughts where Cobitis sp or another Lepidocephalichthys sp but they have grown nicely into Lepidocephalichthys berdmorei's. Cant complain.

[mikev]

Thanks, Graeme...

Interesting. Judging by the body shape and habitat (cf. fishbase), I'd think this is a hillstream, perhaps more so than a schistura. But: Cobitidae, not Balitoridae. And to top it, it seems to have some kuhli characteristics as well....

Are there any tradenames connected to this fellow or other Lepidocephalichthys ? It is now #6 on my "must-have-one-day" list.

[Graeme Robson]

Yes these loaches will inherit all, with there wide spred of locations.

I currently keep mine in with Pangio's and their tanks have the 'wet & 'dry' filtration. I like the waters to run or slowly pour back into the tank as to power though it. I suppose you could always try the Hillstream way. Personally i've never tried it.

Common names? Just the Peppered Loach or if your lucky, a Contaminate.

[mikev]

Nice.

Contaminatae Contaminatus tops my most-wanted list. Probably, not just mine...

[Emma Turner]

Are there any tradenames connected to this fellow or other Lepidocephalichthys

With regards to other species of Lepidocephalichthys, I most often see L. guntea listed as 'Scavenger Loaches'. They now appear regularly on one of my Singapore supplier's lists, in addition to the usual Indian supplier. Then I've seen L. thermalis referred to as 'Lesser Loach', 'Indian Spiny Loach' and 'Spotted Sand Loach'. The other one I've had in is L. hasselti, but can't remember whether the supplier had assigned those a common name.

Emma

[mikev]

Emma,

Thanks a lot! This gives me a chance to find them.

(The unfortunate way the order lists seem to be done here is that the scientific name is not listed on the order form, it only comes with the fish.)

[Jim Powers]

I found what I now think were L. guntea (and continue to see them as such) as "peppered loaches". I have a tiny little guy that is only about 1.5 inches but appears to be very similar, that was sold as "Indian sand loach".